Gay Pride Buenos Aires is slated to take place Oct. 27-Nov. 4, according to GayTravel4U.com . More than 30 organizations and groups host activities that will begin a week before the parade (which is on Nov. 4). Everything from circuit parties to art installations will take place; the parade is expected to have approximately 100,000 attendees. For more details, visit www.gaytravel4u.com/event/gay-pride-buenos-aires.
Travel + Leisure: Southeast Asia ran a list of the best global Pride events to attend this year. Some include London Pride, at Hyde Park Corner (July 1); Thailand's Circuit Festival Asia, in Pattaya (June 23-25); San Francisco Pride (June 24-25); NYC Pride (June 17-25), with Christina Aguilera as the headliner; Pink Dot 15 Singapore (June 24); and Metro Manila Pride (June 24). See www.travelandleisureasia.com/global/people/culture/pride-events-2023/ .
More than 150,000 revelers marched in the 25th annual Tel Aviv Pride Parade, kicking off a weekend of festivities in the largest event of its kind in the Middle East, per The Times of Israel. Unlike previous years, the parade and the afterparty usually held at the end of the march were split into two events due to the intensely hot weather this year. Despite the celebration, the presence of police and the need to pass a security check to enter the cordoned-off parade area were reminders of terror threats and potential violence against the LGBTQ community.
NHS England announced that puberty blockers will only be prescribed to children attending gender-identity services as part of clinical research, the BBC reported. The move came after an interim report into children's gender services said there were "gaps in evidence" around the drugs. Currently, if a child seeks medical help, the drugs are one of the options a doctor could offer to help delay the onset of physical changes that do not match a child's gender identity. This change will come into effect when new clinics replacing the Gender Identity and Development Service begin to open later this year.
Also in Britain, campaigners urged the government to publicly publish a review into the armed forces' historic treatment of LGBTQ+ military personnel—and for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to apologize on behalf of the nation, PinkNews reported. The LGBT Veterans Independent Review was carried out by chair Lord Etherton—independent of the government and the armed forces—and was reportedly submitted to the UK's Tory government in May for review and response. However, there are concerns that the review might not be made public or will be delayed until later in the summer, buried because of the long House of Commons recess.
An Australian man who admitted killing a gay American by punching him off a cliff top in Sydney in 1988 was sentenced to nine years in prison based on a manslaughter conviction, ending the victim's family's 35-year battle for justice, Winnipeg Free Press reported. Scott Phillip White, 52, had pled guilty in the New South Wales state Supreme Court to Los Angeles-born Scott Johnson's manslaughter. White had pled guilty last year to the then-27-year-old's murder—a greater crime—and had been sentenced to more than 12 years in prison; however, he changed his mind and had the murder conviction overturned on appeal.
Also in Australia, trans and gender-diverse people in Queensland will no longer need surgery to update the gender on their birth certificates and other official documents following a law change by the state parliament, PinkNews reported. The changes mean people 16 and older can legally self-identify on their birth certificate without gender-reassignment surgery, as long as a supporting statement is provided by an adult they've known for at least a year.
Protests against "gender ideology" in Canada's capital city of Ottawa brought far-right conservative Christians and Muslims together to attack a local school board for supporting LGBTQ+ students, per LGBTQ Nation. The unusual alliance was met by an equal or greater number of counter-protesters defending the rights of LGBTQ+ kids and denouncing "transphobic, fascist ideology." A new directive by the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (that advised using they/them pronouns for students until their preferred pronouns were expressed) inspired the demonstration, organized by far-right Canadian figure Chris Elston, aka Billboard Chris.
Peru's new ombudsman, Josue Manuel Gutierrez Condor, recently made anti-LGBTQ+ comments before Congress, per The Washington Blade. Condor—whom the Peruvian Congress elected May 17 by a vote of 88-24—called homosexuality a "deformity that needs to be corrected." Days later, Peru's first and only lesbian congressman, Susel Paredes, met with Gutierrez and tweeted, "Meeting with the ombudsman, Josué Gutiérrez. This isn't a blank check. He already committed to a solution for the children of same-sex families. The update of Report 175 on the rights of the LGBTIQ+ community and supporting the Pride March are also part of the commitments." However, not everyone is convinced of Gutierrez's promises after his homophobic appearance before Congress.
Ruling conservatives in the Canadian province of New Brunswick made changes to rules for schools as they sought to "recognize the role of parents" in questions around gender identity—but faced pushback from within their own party, Reuters reported. The former policy, from 2020, said teachers must respect all children's chosen names and pronouns, regardless of age, and that it should be up to the student if their parents were informed. However, provincial Education Minister Bill Hogan announced changes to that policy: As of July 1, children under 16 must have parental consent to alter their names and pronouns at school. New Brunswick Progressive Conservative Premier Blaine Higgs said the policy change "recognized the role of parents," but eight lawmakers—including six Cabinet members—boycotted parliamentary business, citing their "extreme disappointment in a lack of process and transparency."
Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has died at age 86, apparently of leukemia, per The Guardian. The scandal-ridden media tycoon led three governments between 1994 and 2011, and his Forza Italia party is a junior partner in Italy's ruling coalition. He had a spotty record with the LGBTQ+ community: In 2014, a PinkNews item noted that Berlusconi declared that it is "everyone's responsibility" to fight for gay rights—a reversal from his stance in 2011, when he said his government would "never" grant adoption or marriage rights to gay people.
Despite legal advances recognizing same-sex marriage, gender identity and the criminalization of discrimination, Mexico is the second most anti-LGBTQ+ country in Latin America in terms of hate crimes (after Brazil), according to La Prensa Latina. Sexual minorities suffered 305 reported violent acts motivated by hate between 2019 and 2022, including murders, disappearances, attempted murders and suicides, according to The National Observatory of Hate Crimes Against LGBTI+ Persons in Mexico. However, for each documented case there are three others that are not counted, said Ximena Manriquez, the coordinator of the Observatory, an initiative of the Rainbow Foundation.
Former gay adult-film star Antonio Moreno was elected mayor of the small Spanish town of Carcelen, according to Queerty. Moreno gave up making adult films more than six years ago and moved to Carcelen, which is about three hours away from Madrid, with his partner. He was working as a firefighter and a livestock farmer when he decided to run for mayor as part of the conservative Spain's People's Party. Moreno's opponent was the incumbent major, María Dolores Gomez Piquera, who had been in power since 2011 and is a member of Spain's more liberal Socialist Workers Party.
A new British study revealed that one in 15 people—almost 7% of the UK population—changed their sexual identity over a six-year period, The Guardian reported. Women older than 65 are one of the most "sexually fluid" groups, the research found, challenging the assumption that moving between heterosexual and non-heterosexual identities is more common among younger people. The research is published in Demography, the journal of the Population Association of America.
The International LGBTQ+ Travel Association (IGLTA) announced that it has selected Palm Springs, California as the host destination for its 2025 Global Convention, per a press release. Palm Springs exemplifies a destination where individuals can embrace their true selves. Its vibrant and inclusive atmosphere, combined with its stunning landscapes and world-class amenities, make it the perfect backdrop for IGLTA's Global Convention," said IGLTA Board Chair Felipe Cardenas. "We look forward to coming together in this remarkable destination in 2025." In 2017, Palm Springs elected the nation's first all LGBTQ+ city council and in 2021, named the first openly transgender mayor in the state and only the third nationwide.
French pansexual, genderqueer artist Christine and the Queens (he/him) recently released the critically acclaimed album Paranoia, Angels, True Love through Because Music, per a press release. According to the release, "The record is a departure not only thematically but also sonically from Chris' prior albums and takes direct inspiration from Tony Kushner's play, Angels in America. Chris embarks on a voyage of self-discovery, paving the way for a captivating and introspective musical experience." His album features guest appearances from Madonna and 070 Shake, and his world tour has just started.
Mexican diver Diego Balleza has opened an OnlyFans account because of a lack of financial resources ahead of next year's Paris Olympics, per The Chicago Tribune. Balleza is one of several Mexican athletes affected by a dispute between World Aquatics and national sports commission head Ana Guevara that, since January, has stopped providing monthly payments for aquatics athletes. "It occurred to me to open it because you are always looking for a way to make income. I support my house and my mother, and I have bills to pay, and you can upload whatever you want in there, it's ... valid content," Balleza told The Associated Press.
